Doing this would replace other benefits people receive under the country’s social welfare system. A proposal for this basic income will be prepared by November 2016. If it works, Finland would become the first country to offer a universal basic income. Finland’s prime minister is in favor of the idea because it would simplify the country’s social security system.

Critics say the plan is “unrealistic.” In an editorial for Bloomberg View, Leonid Bershidsky provides one big practical reason: the cost. Around Є52 billion per year exceeds the Є49 billion in revenue the government projects for next year, Bershidsky points out, as well as that “Finland has one of the European Union’s shakier economies. It has been in recession almost continually since mid-2012 and lacks growth opportunities.”

In spite of its uncertain economic prospects, Finland already shells out a lot of cash and benefits to its citizens, as many social democracies do. High taxes fund health care and enable universities to be tuition-free, which is just one reason why implementing a plan like this might not work in the U.S.

For example, Fast Companyrecently reported on the staggering differences between the Nordic country’s paid parental leave and support packages for new parents.

Nine months of paid leave is granted to new parents of either gender in Finland, and their job is secure. Not everyone takes advantage of the full benefits.

According to Kela, the average total amount of paternity leave benefits accumulated by new Finnish dads is 33 days and Є2,800 ($3,143). For maternity leave, new Finnish moms took an average of 257 days and Є15,300 ($17,176).

Kela also pays a tax-free, monthly “child benefit” for each child up to age 17. The benefit starts at Є95 ($106) per month for a first child and goes up gradually for each additional child. For a third child, for instance, the benefit is another Є135 ($151) per month.

As we’ve reported, in the U.S., there is no federally mandated paid parental leave. The current Family and Medical Leave Act only guarantees up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave with the existing job held for the employee’s return. The policy has been supplemented in individual states, but the U.S. is still one of only three countries among 185 not to offer public policies for paid leave.

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Democratic presidential hopefuls support 12 weeks of paid leave, but other paid benefits, when offered, are at the discretion of the individual businesses providing them.

Finland stands to gain if this measure passes, because its unemployment is at a 15-year high of 9.53% and would encourage people to take lower-wage jobs. Right now, citizens who take such a position would receive a lower amount of welfare benefits, and the universal income could help fill that gap.

The U.S. has the opposite problem, with 5% unemployment at its lowest rate since the beginning of the recession in 2008, and the demand for jobs in areas such as nursing and information technology far exceeding the number of skilled candidates.

Finland, like other European countries such as Switzerland and the Netherlands, favors the basic income proposal because it would be a safety net for the fact that job growth isn’t keeping pace with automation, and people won’t be able to keep up by getting a degree or skills certifications.

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Pilot studies of a universal basic income show that it doesn’t result in people not working. Instead, once people are no longer afraid of making ends meet, they become productive.

Welfare was reformed in 1996 to reduce federal spending and encourage a transition to economic independence. Critics of the existing system in the GOP say: “Each year, this system dispenses nearly $1 trillion in taxpayer funds across a maze of approximately 80 programs that are neither coordinated nor effective in solving poverty and lifting up families.” They believe that benefits just perpetuate joblessness.

Finland still has a year to go before the proposal is even reviewed. We’ll be watching for the results.

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About the author

Lydia Dishman is a reporter writing about the intersection of tech, leadership, and innovation. She is a regular contributor to Fast Company and has written for CBS Moneywatch, Fortune, The Guardian, Popular Science, and the New York Times, among others.